The Bobcats
Tuesday night, though, Bobcat fans could pray for another Jason Carter double-double. The freshman forward has notched two double-doubles in the past three games, replacing Campbell at the center position and changing Ohio’s culture drastically.
Ohio plays Toledo on Tuesday night in The Convo. Tip off is at 7 p.m.
“I was thinking (Campbell) would be healthy for the whole year,” Carter said. “I thought this would be a year to play behind him and learn from him and Kenny (Kaminski). But, things happen, so I got put in this position.”
Against Northern Illinois this past Saturday, Carter garnered 17 points and 12 rebounds on 7-of-13 shooting. It was his first start.
In most-likely his second start against Toledo, Carter — along with sophomore Doug Taylor — will anchor the Bobcats (12-5, 4-2 Mid-American Conference) against the Rockets’ (10-9, 3-3 MAC) second-ranked offense. Toledo averages 82 points per game, as senior Jonathan Williams’ 21 points per game
“(Carter)’s handled himself against big guys on many, many occasions before he got here,” Phillips said of Carter playing the “five” position undersized. “He does everything a five does: posts well, he rebounds at a high clip, he’s very good at
Phillips said he doesn’t mind starting two “fours” against Toledo and moving forward with Campbell out.
Carter is technically a power forward, or the "four" position, the same position locked down by redshirt senior Kaminski. But Carter’s production has been promising during the previous three games: 12.3 points and 10.3 rebounds.
Phillips said Ellis Dozier could potentially see more minutes, too, after Campbell’s season-ending injury shifted Ohio’s rotation in the front court.
Dozier hasn’t played much: just 23 minutes in seven games and one made
“We’re in a little bit of uncharted territory,” Phillips said. “I had a good idea where our ceiling was with Tony as a team. And now, I certainly don’t want to limit it so I’m not going to set it too low, but it’s certainly a different place.”
Phillips added Monday that he wants to see Carter and Taylor playing side-by-side on the floor before experimenting his rotations.
“We’re going to need both of them, they’re a two-headed monster for now,” Phillips said. “And I would like to get to a spot in some games where we get deep enough that I can put (Carter and Taylor) on the floor together at times, but that isn’t certainly something I’m going to get too cavalier with the early stages of ball games at this point.”
